In June 1963 the thatched mediaeval barn at Pilton, one of four surviving barns built by Glastonbury Abbey around 1300, was struck by lightning. The fire itself, and the bonfires that reportedly burnt for weeks, destroyed every piece of timber structure before any records were made.

Our feasibility study established that there was sufficient evidence to justify a reconstruction of the roof structure and a Building Preservation Trust was established to secure the future of the Scheduled Monument.

This reconstruction is a rigorous and scholarly collaboration between architects and craftsmen drawing on documentary and physical evidence that required skilled interpretation. It has revealed much about the way such roofs were constructed and in several respects contradicts established theories.

The result is a powerful space that will gently mature in coming years and is already a valuable asset for the local community.